Apple updates Mac mini: Core i5 and i7, Thunderbolt, AMD Radeon HD, no SuperDrive

Apples new 2011 Mac Mini has just launched and is now available in the Apple Store with prices starting from $599. The new Apple Mac Mini now supports twice the memory of previous versions with a maximum of 8GB being supported.

The consumer models have a choice of dual-core Intel Core i5 or Intel Core i7 processors, paired AMD Radeon HD 6630M discrete graphics, while the Server model has a quad-core Intel Core i7. $599 gets you the 2.3GHz Core i5 mini with 2GB of RAM and a 500GB HDD, while up to 750GB of hard-drive and 8GB of RAM are options. $799 gets you the 2.5GHz dual-core Core i5, with 4GB of RAM and a 500GB HDD; a 2.7GHz Core i7, 8GB of memory, and either a 750GB hard-drive or 256GB SSD are options.

Finally, the 2.0GHz quad-core Core i7 Mac mini with Lion Server model has 4GB of RAM, twin 500GB hard-drives and starts at $999. Options include up to 8GB of RAM, two 750GB hard-drive or two 256GB SSDs.

Via – Apple

2011 MacBook Air Announced, Full Specifications

Apple has updated its MacBook Air ultraportable, bringing the notebook range up to date with Intel’s 2011 Sandy Bridge processors, as well as the high-speed Thunderbolt connectivity already seen on the MacBook Pro and iMac. Running OS X Lion, the new 11.6- and 13.3-inch Airs keep the slick unibody styling of their predecessors but throws in a backlit keyboard.

Two standard configurations of 11.6-inch MacBook Air are on offer, firstly at $999 with a 1.6GHz Core i5 processor, 2 GB of RAM and a 64 GB SSD drive, and then the $1,199 performance version with a 1.6GHz Core i5 processor, 4 GB of RAM and a 128 GB SSD drive. The display runs at 1366 x 768. Options include a 1.8GHz Core i7 processor, 4GB of RAM and larger SSDs.

Similarly, there are two standard configs of the 13.3-inch MacBook Air, beginning with the $1,299 with a 1.7GHz Core i5 processor, 4 GB of RAM and a 128 GB SSD drive, and then the $1,599 top-end version with the same processor, 4 GB of RAM and a 256 GB SSD drive. Its display runs at 1440 x 900, while options include a 1.8GHz Core i7 CPU.

Graphics are from Intel’s HD Graphics 3000. Otherwise connectivity is the same as before, which means WiFi a/b/g/n and Bluetooth as standard, along with a pair of USB 2.0 ports and a headphone port. There’s a built-in microphone and a webcam. Battery life for the 11.6-inch Air is up to 5 hours, while the 13.3-inch Air increases that to 7 hours.

Source Apple

NVIDIA announces GeForce GTX 580M and 570M, availability in the Alienware M18x and MSI GT780R

We know you’re going to be shocked — shocked! — to hear this, but NVIDIA’s gone and refreshed its high-end line of GeForce GTX cards. The GTX 580M takes the place of the GTX 485M, and NVIDIA’s bragging that it’s the “fastest notebook GPU ever,” capable of besting the Radeon HD 6970M’s tesselation performance by a factor of six. The new GTX 570M, meanwhile, promises a 20 percent speed boost over the last-generation 470M. Both 40-nanometer cards support DirectX11, OpenCL, PhysX, CUDA, 3D Vision, Verde drivers, Optimus, SLI, and 3DTV Play. As for battery life, NVIDIA’s saying that when coupled with its Optimus graphics switching technology, the 580M can last through five hours of Facebook, but last we checked, that’s not why y’all are shelling out thousands for beastly gaming rigs. You can find the 580M in the Alienware M17X and M18X (pictured) starting today, though you might have to wait a week or so for them to ship. Meanwhile, the 570M is shipping in the MSI GT780R as you read this, and you’ll also find the 580M in a pair of 3D-capable Clevo laptops: the P170HM3 and the SLI-equipped P270WN. Handy chart full ‘o technical details after the break.